18 April 2006

What I saw at the Sydney Royal Easter Show

A Welcome banner and mascot-The Sydney Royal Easter Show is Australia's version of the state fair, as you can probably tell by the poor version of Big Tex here. There are some differences as you will see in the following pictures, but basically, it was a day at the fair.

A Yoda cake--Yes, there is a cake in there or so they say. Kind of creepy.

A Yumcha cake--This is a restaurant in downtown Sydney--think Chinese Luby's. Heather and I ate there a few months ago, and this "cake" looks exactly like their food. Australia's Biggest Loser held an immunity challenge there a few weeks ago, too.

A Japanese Quilt--There weren't many quilts on display, but I was impressed with this one. However, Heather could do better.

A Bulldog--I also saw a huge Bullmastiff, a couple of Rasta-dogs and lots of cats. Most of the dogs had already gone home, but this dog was the best of what I saw in my opinion. The cats were all in travel cages and difficult to get a picture of.

A Doggie Rugby Jersey--When we get a dog one of these days, Heather wants to dress it in clothes, which I am adamantly against. But, I'll lose this one, I'm sure, so at least I found an acceptable choice. Go the Wallabies!

A Woodcutters Championship Competition--and the place was packed! Woodcutters from NSW, ACT, Tasmania, Victoria, Queensland, and New Zealand all competed. No big surprise that the Tasmanians and New Zealanders dominated.

Real Live Bilbies--There is an effort to replace the rabbit with the bilby as the official Easter animal. Many people here don't look too kindly upon the rabbit--they aren't native to Australia and were brought here for sporting purposes. You know what they say about rabbits--soon they had taken over the country. I know the picture isn't great, but the glass was dirty and scratched and the bilbies weren't in a vogue kind of mood.

The Gold Cup Championship Polo Match--ACT beat Queensland in this 2006 Championship game, providing the win in polo that the Brumbies could not in rugby union the previous night. In this photo, a Queensland player is taking a penalty shot. These penalties routinely went over the safety nets into the crowd. Before each one, the announcer would remind the crowd the "keep your eye on the play" because a wooden ball flying that fast could really ruin your day.